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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: current · prune · chest · cue · bay · snap · jam · spring

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. cue — for pool
  3. cue — a signal
  4. prune — to trim
  5. current — electric
  6. prune — to trim
  7. spring — of water
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. spring — a coil
  11. current — happening now
  12. chest — a box
  13. chest — of your body
  14. current — of water
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. spring — the season
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. snap — to click
  19. cue — a hint
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. snap — to snap out of it

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com